[Reporter’s Notebook] "Hard to Keep Up with the 'Speeding Nuclear Phase-Out'" Government Ignores Doosan Heavy Industries' New Year Greetings

People attending this year's energy industry New Year's gathering held at 5 p.m. on January 21 in Sogong-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul, at the Westin Chosun Hotel. The person on the far right is Jeong Yeonin, President of Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction. (Photo by Moon Chaeseok)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] "We are making many efforts according to the government's energy policy, but the reality is that it is not easy to keep up with many rapid changes." (January 21, President Jung Yeon-in of Doosan Heavy Industries)

This was said by the president of a company once regarded as one of the world's top nuclear power companies at the energy industry's New Year's gathering. While attendees were cutting cake and passing around glasses, he alone expressed this frustration. He was struggling with management difficulties and simply could not smile. Two months later, Doosan Heavy Industries revealed that it was considering partial shutdowns.

Experts point out that the reason a world-class company decided to close its factory by itself is due to the Moon Jae-in administration's excessively rapid nuclear phase-out (energy transition) policy. The construction project of Shin Hanul Nuclear Power Plant Units 3 and 4, with a total project cost of 8.26 trillion won, confirmed in the '7th Basic Plan for Electricity Supply and Demand' established in 2015, where Doosan Heavy Industries produced about 30% of the main equipment, was halted. In addition, four new nuclear power plant construction projects?Cheonji Units 1 and 2, and Daejin Units 1 and 2?were terminated. Doosan Heavy Industries' new orders decreased from around 9 trillion won before the Moon administration's inauguration in 2016 to about 2.1 trillion won by the end of the third quarter last year. This is cited as a representative case of the damage caused by the 'over-speed nuclear phase-out.'

After the New Year's gathering where President Jung was the only one not smiling, the government continued to accelerate its policies for two more months. During these two months, the energy industry suffered from ▲ Korea Electric Power Corporation's deficit of 1.3566 trillion won ▲ the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission's confirmation of the permanent shutdown of Wolsong Unit 1 ▲ the Board of Audit and Inspection's postponement of the audit related to Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power's economic feasibility reduction of Wolsong Unit 1 ▲ controversies over the saturation point of Wolsong Nuclear Power Plant's MACSTOR (dry storage facility for spent nuclear fuel) and the increased risk of Wolsong Nuclear Power Plant's restart.

Experts advise that construction of Shin Hanul Units 3 and 4 should be resumed even now. First, to save Doosan Heavy Industries and nuclear parts suppliers who have suffered critical damage. Second, to prevent the damage from spreading from 'private companies → public enterprises → the public.' Here, public enterprises refer to institutions under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, such as Korea Electric Power Technology (a nuclear power plant design company) and KEPCO Nuclear Fuel (a nuclear fuel design and manufacturing company).

President Jung said a few more words at the New Year's gathering. "I hope the machines we make (gas turbines) will greatly help the domestic energy transition policy." "We will also cooperate with the industry that is creating the domestic energy ecosystem to create opportunities for growth." Despite losing nuclear-related orders, the company's core cash-generating source, due to the government's over-speed policy, they tried to push forward the gas turbine business together somehow.

Now, concerns are being raised that not only Doosan Heavy Industries' nuclear-related business but even the gas turbine business will shrink, and labor-management conflicts will grow. If the government does not stop accelerating, the nuclear industry, public enterprises, and ultimately the public could suffer as a 'second Doosan Heavy Industries.' This would be the repeated side effects of the over-speed nuclear phase-out policy, where previously unproblematic matters turn into serious issues due to government policy.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.